Drew this for Matthea Harvey‘s poem “Game for Anything” that I comic-ed for Loaded Bicycle. I didn’t put it in the final comic because even though it came out well, the face didn’t look at all right for the character. Eh, what are you going to do?

Each summer I work with a children’s theater program in my hometown of Globe, Arizona. The program culminates in a full-scale musical production. This year we are mounting a musical version of Alice in Wonderland.
Here is the head of break-apart black light Cheshire Cat puppet I’ve been making for the show.

Photo via At Least She’s Creative

Merry X-mas from me and the Krampus!

It seems that the world community has lost interest in Argentina’s gnome infestation. Not me! I have written my senator a letter with some forcefully underlined words. Apathy in Argentina is inexcusable.

For those of you still unaware of the current panic gripping (with little hands) our friends to the south. Here is the evidence of three sightings:

“You know what I think’s creepier?” said Aaron Neber when reached for comment. “The videos of maids that pick up cameras and accidentally film themselves.” He continued, “They are just as short and jarring, and you know that shit’s real.”

“What’s this have to do with David Bowie?? you ask. Right now I only have my suspicions, but Mr. Bowie has been strangely absent from the public eye for a few years. If he wasn’t up to something nefarious he’d have a degrading and exploitive reality show on VH1 or Bravo right now. What’s he hiding? How are we supposed to trivialize his inspiring and admirable career if he won’t subject himself to public humiliation by way of cable syndication?

I propose the theory that he does have a reality show in the works. It’s something between “Punk’d” and “Ghost Hunters.” Bowie uses his other worldly connections to convince gnomes to pull pranks on Argentinean teenagers. We know he’s worked with gnomes before:

David Bowie – The Laughing Gnome

It’s pretty obvious when you really think about it. The problem is that, once released, you can’t control gnomes, and they (unlike goblins) aren’t suspectible to Dance Magic. If we can’t stop the gnoming in Argentina, we’ll be seeing a lot more youtube videos like these. Write your senators.

First off, an addendum to the argument for the cultural necessity of Alien vs. Predator: The Musical as proposed in Alien vs. Predator: Gender Politics.

At least two poems have been featured prominently enough entitled Alien vs. Predator to be considered as having literary merit.

The more widely known and, perhaps undeservedly, applauded is by Michael Robbins and can be found in The New Yorker. This poem tends to draw nothing from its title but novelty and kitsch to jazz up a relatively unexceptional poem.

The other poem is by Christopher Monks and can be found on the McSweeney’s online. A poem, though smaller in scope, more interestingly plays with the spectrum of conflict and competition. I prefer this poem since tries to engage with the rich energy of the rich energy of the Alien vis-à-vis Predator franchise rather than selfishly try to capitalize on it.

IN FILM NEWS: Variety reports that some Nimrod is now set to direct the upcoming Predators set for release in 2010. “If it can live up to AnaconDAS, I’m all for it,” said Aaron Neber when reached for comment. He continued, “Technically it’s Anacondas: Search for the Blood Orchid, but colloquially known as Anacondas.”

Nimrod Atal is the director of the upcoming Armored, and the Luke Wilson vehicle Vacancy. I haven’t seen Vacancy but it’s a hotel horror film so I’m guessing it goes like this. Robert Rodriguez, director of The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D, and The Faculty, will be the producer and will help write the screenplay.

What’s this mean for AVP:TM fans out there? Basically the band is breaking up. Not unlike when George Michael left Wham, but this isn’t over, far from it. The “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go” reunion tour can still happen. Predator will come back, licking his badly rendered, CGI wounds. This to we shall overcome.

Also, this is fun.

An Update UPDATE: Looks like Alien is also considering going solo. This is good, now it’s more like when Outcast put out separate albums.

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With more than a soupcon of reservation, I decided to read Dave Eggers’ piece in the newest New Yorker. Truth be told, if my boss hadn’t been out of town allowing me to sneak off with her copy, I doubt I would have bothered to read it at all. But with the fake folks in Telluride and a lot of commuting time to kill, I purloined the magazine and snooped through the contents.

The Eggers selection is excerpted from his forthcoming book “The Wild Things,” titled, I believe, after the popular Tone Loc song. The book is a long form (300pgs) adaptation of the film Where the Wild Things Are that he and Spike Jonze adapted from the children’s book of the same name.  Egger’s book will be released fifteen days before the film on October 1, 2009, giving ample time for critics to comment, “I like the book better” at the movie’s premiere.  The book itself will be available with, I assume by virtue of shaving, or without fur, as per reader’s preference.

I’ve expressed concern about this endeavor before. Adaptations of beloved children’s books have not been going well for a while.  Disasters like The Cat in the Hat, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (might have been okay if Count Olaf hadn’t been doing a really bad Jim Carey impersonation the whole movie), and the crimes of one Tim Burton (the Alice in Wonderland trailer makes me wonder if he’s ever read the books he adapts).

I’ve always held to the personal belief that great books should remain great books and that film’s should mind their own business by sticking original screenplays.  Seriously, make as many Shreks as you want, I really don’t mind.  But since we live in a world where produces won’t invest in a project that doesn’t guarantee a return, we’ll continue to see good books snatched into celluloid, because no matter how awful The Scarlet Letter was, there were still enough people wanting to see Demi Moore in a bodice to make a little green, go figure.  I do concede that there are exceptions.  Coraline I feel is a very good movie adaptation of the Neil Gaiman children’s book. (Claire, if you are reading this I want to reiterate that Tim Burton had nothing to do with Coraline or James and the Giant Peach, and Henry Selick rules.  Whoop.)
 
Back to the Eggers Story
I started reading the selection expecting to hate it.  Experience had taught me to expect that Mr. Eggers was just appropriating more stories that he didn’t properly have the right to tell.  I’ve noticed that about his work.  I was anticipating an agenda-ed story that would have nothing to do with Maurice Sendak’s original story save the main character’s name.  What I found, however, was something more thoughtful and measured.  There was a tone of respect.  Part of what makes the original children’s book so powerful is the space Sendak has created for the character’s psychology.  Max’s mischief is inspired by and informed through the control exercised upon him by his mother, it’s relatable and easy to empathize with.  Eggers, instead of crushing this aspect, builds around it keeping that sort of soul.  The way Eggers connects the dots Sendak had created with his 334-word story was not at all about jazzing up something to make it pop, in the way I had feared it might.  I must say I surprisingly enjoyed it. Sure, maybe I was drunk on the rush of heisting my boss’ New Yorker that made it seem better than I had expected.  My one quibble being that the original mentions that Max tames the wild things by staring into all their yellow eyes without blinking once, Eggers for some unknown reason omits this.  I will also note that the excerpt is only ten or so pages long, leaving 290 more for Eggers to commit bibliocide.

Later I found this and felt more at ease:

It seems that in the case of Where the Wild Things Are, as was true in Coraline, the author is on board and involved which I hope is a lesson to Hollywood, and reason enough to leave the works of dead authors alone. Please.

Also, here is the newest Where the Wild Things Are trailer:

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Painting by my post-it pirate of a sister.
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All you other velociraptor enthusiasts out there can’t miss the (occasionally dino inspired) poetic stylings of Miss Autumn Giles, one of the featured readers at Cornelia Street Café.  If you like bubblegum, sonnets, and borsht in toothpaste tubes you be better catch her this Tuesday, March 24^th at 6:00pm.